The 50th Paris Air Show takes off (pictures)

Current and future aeronautics crafts go on display as commercial and military vendors trot out their latest technological innovations.

Read More

50th Paris Air Show

This Airbus A400M, a military-oriented cargo plane, banked steeply over Le Bourget airport for the 50th annual Paris Air Show.

Show organizers expect more than 350,000 visitors this year. Besides being a major venue for aircraft manufacturers to demonstrate their latest technologies to clients, the show is ground zero for deal-making.

Dassault 'Rafale' fighter

A French Dassault "Rafale" fighter performs over Le Bourget airport. The Rafale is an omnirole twin-engine craft, which debuted in 2001. French Rafales saw action in 2011 airstrikes against Moammar Gadhafi's forces. France also deployed the aircraft this past January to help Mali's government beat back rebels.

Rafale goes for a spin

Sukhoi SU-35 military jet

The pilot of a Russian-made Sukhoi SU-35 military jet presents his flying prowess. This multirole fighter craft is Russia's answer to the U.S. F-35. Here's the Sukhoi company's description of the plane's technical capabilities.

More than 1,000 miles

Ariane 5

The European Space Agency showed off a mammoth Ariane 5 heavy-lift rocket at the Paris Air Show. It's used to carry heavy satellites into orbit -- low Earth orbit or the much higher geostationary orbit -- and 50 of the rockets have been launched so far.

British Airlines Airbus A380

A British Airlines Airbus A380 flies over Le Bourget airport. Airbus is hoping that its latest planes can help close the gap against arch-rival Boeing. And on the first day of the show, Airbus indeed announced a memorandum of understanding with the German aircraft leasing company Doric for a deal worth more than $8 billion.

'E-Fan' goes all-electric

Prototype model, called the "E-Fan," of an all-electric instruction two-seater aircraft from aerospace and defense corporation EADS. The plane includes battery packs in its wings. It also features an electrical taxiing system.